Barcelona Agrees to Buy Forward Sanchez for $54 Million

July 22 (Bloomberg) -- European soccer champion Barcelona
agreed to buy Chile forward Alexis Sanchez from Italian club
Udinese for as much as 37.5 million euros ($54.1 million).

The deal includes an up-front payment of 26 million euros,
Barcelona said on its website last night.

Sanchez, who will have a medical exam on July 25, will sign
a five-year contract and will be the first Chilean to play for
Barcelona, the Spanish champion said. He was voted as the best
player in Italy’s Serie A last season, when he scored 12 goals
in 31 games.

“He can play in all three attacking positions, he shows
intense defensive skills, he’s direct and from what I’ve been
told, he’s a very nice kid,” Guardiola said.

Barcelona also said today it agreed to sell striker Bojan
Krkic to Roma for 12 million euros.

The deal includes an obligatory buyback after the 2012-13
season that would cost Barcelona 13 million euros, the club said
on its website. If Roma blocks the move, the value of the
original transfer rises to 40 million euros, Barcelona said.

Krkic, 20, scored seven goals in 35 games last season, when
he was used mostly used as a substitute. He was also a member of
the Spain team that won the European under-21 championship last
month.

Barcelona plays Croatia’s Hajduk Split tomorrow in its
opening preseason match before a July 26 game against Brazilian
club Internacional in Munich.

Guardiola’s squad then travels to the U.S. for a three-match tour, which begins July 30 with an exhibition game against
English champion Manchester United at FedEx Field in Landover,
Maryland.

Barcelona is scheduled to open its Spanish league title
defense at Malaga on Aug. 21.